Happy Birthday
by Nanashi1
Summary: Sasuke doesn't like his birthday and he would very much like to forget all about it. So why in the world could his idiotic fangirls not take a hint? - Today is Sasuke's birthday. So here is a little fanfiction to celebrate. It's set before the chunin exam. Malexmale SasuxNaru/ NaruxSasu


**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything. All rights are reserved for Masashi Kishimoto, the great.

**Warning:** Sakura-bashing**  
**

Enjoy!

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It was so awfully warm. Not a single cloud in the sky. Not at all what he had hoped to see. July the 23rd was Uchiha Sasuke's least favorite day of the year, every year. He woke up every year on this day and he would have a raging headache. He would drag himself out of bed and he would loath every breath he took. His greatest wish every year would be, for this day to cease to exist. Or to end quickly. He didn't want people to know. He didn't want to talk to people. He wanted to hide, forget and be forgotten. But his wish never came true.

Before that fateful night six years ago, July the 23rd would have been giddily anticipated. But it wasn't six years ago and everything was different. Nothing was the same. After all, his brother went berserk in search for power and annihilated all that had been dear to him. There was no joy left in his world. Only the constant search for power. For revenge. He wanted his brother dead. Today more than anything. If it hadn't been for his brother, he would still have a family to return home to. He'd still have something joyful to look forward to.

Life didn't work his way. One could not talk to fate. One had no way to plan his life in entirety. Once you had all planned out: Family, children, work, money. Fate would look down upon you and say '_way too happy'_ and then she'd destroy everything you tried so hard to protect. Only in his situation, fate, had been given the name _Itachi. _And she'd successfully fooled him into believing her to be his brother. To trust her. To love her. What a fool he had been.

Slower than usual, Sasuke dragged himself out of the bed. Showered, brushed his teeth and had tea for breakfast. It took him more than twice the amount of time, to be ready for training. For a moment he considered not going to training at all. He was in no mood to face his stupid female teammate or his idiotic other teammate. But he reminded himself, that in order to become stronger, he could not allow himself any weaknesses. Skipping training, only to not face stupid people, would at one point definitely come back to bite him in the ass. So, reluctantly and broodier than usual, he made his way to the training grounds.

The bright pink hair of his annoying fan-girl was far too soon visible. And surprisingly, there were two blondes. Although only one of them wore a blinding orange jumpsuit. His eyes narrowed, as he recognized the other blonde, next to his teammates: Yamanaka Ino. Another one of his fans, albeit not as annoying as Haruno Sakura, the girl who he was unfortunately teamed up with. His fans weren't especially bright, nor strong. They served no use for him and he loathed them for it. His female team-mate in particular. Sasuke was forced to see and hear her every single day. She was loud and rude. And he was quite sure, she had more than one personality. Her limitations were legendary. He had yet to find a single trade of her, which could be seen as an advantage. Up until now, she had been of no worth in any of their missions. She had flunked their first test as team with flying colors. What kind of ninja fainted at the sight of a teammate in need of help? Next to Naruto, she must have been the most irritating person this world had ever seen.

Uzumaki Naruto in one word: loud. In two words: dead last. For the life of him, Sasuke did not understand how such a person became a Genin in the first place. His intelligence quotient was that of a five year old. He had the tendency of getting himself trapped, his chakra control was lousy and he was so annoying. Sasuke's fists itched to hit him, every time he saw something orange. He was no help on his quest for power, either.

Their team was then completed with Hatake Kakashi, their sensei. This person might just be as bad as the other two. For the longest time, Sasuke had looked up to the older ninjas. Before his brother went berserk, he wanted to be just like him: a Shinobi of higher rank. For him this meant complete control and unbelievable strength. He had looked forward to be trained by an elite and to finally get closer to his goal. And then he had met Kakashi. Yet another idiot, who never took anything seriously and busied himself with reading porn. Apparently unable to read the time, he was always too late and thus stole important training time from Sasuke. He had been devastated after he had met him. Specially after their first encounter. An hour after their scheduled appointment, this man finally showed up surrounded by an air of naivety. It invited others to play tricks on him. Others being Naruto, who actually managed to prank him. Wasn't a Jonin supposed to see through misfits?

On that day, Sasuke came to the conclusion, that he had the mishap of being the only sane person on team 7. Yes, fate really did seem to enjoy rubbing chili in his wounds.

Getting closer, he unmistakably made out a sickeningly sweet looking kind of pastry, sitting on a bench behind both girls. He could also clearly see the pout on his other teammate's face, thus realizing that that monstrosity was most likely for him. How did those females even know it was his birthday? He never made it a habit, to inform anyone about it.

The moment he was spotted by the girls, his skin crawled. Probably trying to call attention to themselves, they had tried to put on some make-up. And both had obviously failed horribly. Now, they looked more like clowns than anything else. Sasuke cringed despite himself. Their fake eyelashes were draped onto their eyes with way too much glue. The bright blue eye-shadow contrasted horribly with Sakura's green eyes. Both of them wore bright red lipstick, of which some had been spread onto their teeth, Sasuke noticed. How ugly could one get? As they drew closer to him, he automatically took a step back. But he needn't worry. The blonde male of his team had already stepped into his line of vision. Had entered his personal space and glared now daggers at him. Sasuke even detected a faint growl coming from him. "Teme! Way to push yourself in the spotlight! You bastard!"

Sasuke blinked. Excuse you? What the hell was wrong with him? He narrowed his eyes. "Not like I chose to be born today, dobe!"

Naruto scoffed. "No, but you insisted on telling everyone! You really have to be desperate for the attention, haven't you?"

Sasuke eyebrow twitched. "I think you got us confused there, idiot!"

"Naruto!" now the females behind them hissed at the other. "What the hell do you think you're doing? It's Sasuke-kun's birthday, you twit! Be nice or be gone! You idiot!" Sakura continued before she unceremoniously send the blonde male flying.

That hurt, Sasuke knew. He'd maybe have felt bad about the other, hadn't he still been pissed. How dare that fool? He had done nothing to attract attention. He himself wanted nothing more than to forget what today was. Or to get over with this cursed day! He had told no one! He hadn't wanted anybody to know, damn it! His nails dug into his skin and draw blood. Stupid! Stupid, stupid, stupid. He should never have gotten out of bed this morning!

Arms clung to him on either side of his body. Bodies pressed themselves against him. Screeching voices cooed into his ears: "Sasuke-kun, don't think so much about that idiot. He is just jealous of you! You are good looking, strong and smart. Everything he is not. He just wanted attention, like a homeless mutt. Nothing to worry about!"

Sasuke listened, knowing the blonde could hear them as well. He felt bad. In comparison to those two ugly females, he'd rather fight with his teammate in the usual manner. At least then he could pretend, today was just like any other day. Unimportant. Just another day of training, to become stronger. To get closer to his goal. Closer to his brother. But it was too late. The girls guided him to a bench, where they presented him with the cake. A white and red decorated chocolate cake. Yuck. How disgusting. He hated sweets! Chocolate most of all! They dared call themselves his fan-girls, yet they didn't even know that. How meek.

He avoided looking at the sugar oozing, tooth decaying mess and instead let his eyes wander to the blonde male. The other stood secluded in the shade of a tree. Observing them with the most heart-broken look Sasuke had ever seen on his face. Despite himself, Sasuke knew, Naruto's birthday had been on October the tenth. Two weeks after they had formed team seven. He knew, that no one had spared him a second glance. No one had congratulated him. No one had given him any kind of present. No one had paid him any mind. And he also knew, that besides himself, at least Kakashi must have know about his birthday. It was noted in their file after all. But their sensei had not shown any signs of acknowledgment at all. Not wanting to appear weird, he too, had pretended not to know anything. And although he had noticed the Hyuga girl lingering around their training grounds, the day had drawn to a close, brushing aside any remains of the blonde's birthday. Sasuke remembered, how he had hoped, that for him, it would be the same. Everybody would either pretend not to know, or really not know. But thus far his hopes had not been correct. His hope now lay with his sensei. Trusting, the gray-haired coot to not spare his file a second glance either.

His eyes finally left Naruto, when a familiar popping sound resonated behind him. Turning around he was met with his sensei's smiling eye. And an outstretched hand holding a wrapped object. So much for his hopes. So the old dastard knew their birthdays after all. So why had he ignored his teammate's? Suspiciously Sasuke narrowed his eyes but didn't say anything. He made no attempt to accept the gift either.

Kakashi straightened at this and turned to address Ino: "What a surprise to see an unfamiliar face. Do you not have training today?"

The girl blushed and wiped her sweaty palms on her pants. "Well, yes...I do...But Asuma-sensei knows I will be a bit late today!" she hastened to add.

The smile did not leaves Kakashi's face. "Does he know, _why_ you will be late? 'Cause I for one, wouldn't mind telling him!"

Ino's cheeks grew yet a shade darker. "I...uh...I need to go! Happy Birthday again, Sasuke-kun!" And then she was finally gone.

However, to his great misfortune Sakura remained where she was: Clued to his arm, rubbing herself against him, like a cat in heat.

"Now then" Kakashi started. But stopped as he noticed Naruto offside to the rest of the team. He beckoned him over and waited more or less patiently for him to come over. The pink-haired girl to his left grumbled incoherently. "Now then" Kakashi started anew "as you will all know, it's Sasuke's birthday today. And quite frankly, there is not much to do for us today, either. So what do you say, we all take a day's rest and celebrate our little princess' birthday with a trip to the barbeque place? My treat!"

Sakura squealed happily next to him, while Naruto tensed even more. Sasuke noticed, how his eyes were firmly pointed to the ground. He also noticed, the almost invisible shake of his shoulders. He stiffened. Enough was enough. Angrily he stood up: "I don't know what your point is, but I do not appreciate being favored by a man, who's supposed to mentor all of us! You didn't so much as wish Naruto a happy birthday nine month ago, so don't you fucking go around doing this shit for me now! Either you treat all of us the same, or find a team that doesn't mind favoritism! However, I do take you up on the offer of a free pass. Good day!"

He walked away as quickly as he could, though not missing, the astonished look on Naruto's face. Nor did he miss Kakashi's outraged gaze. Whatever. They could all bite him!

The sun was about to set, as a hesitant knock grabbed Sasuke's attention. Not again! All day, random girls had shown up at his doorstep. Showering him in sickeningly sweet congratulations and presents. Most of them consisting his least favorite food in the world. If he found the person, that spilled the date of his birth to the whole fucking village, he would aim straight for their head!

Ready to kill the next bearer of candy, he strode over to the entrance. Almost ripping the door out of its angles, he wrenched the door open.

And was met with a sight he had least expected. There, in front of him in all his orange glory, stood his teammate Uzumaki Naruto with a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of his head. In his hands, he carried two bags of groceries. "Yo, teme... How's it going?"

Sasuke wasn't stupid. Far from it. And something definitely smelled fishy here. He did not move to let the other enter, despite the other's efforts to get passed him.

"Uhm...Can I come inside?"

"No!"

The blonde whined. "Why not? I made the effort to come here, after all!"

Sasuke wasn't faced. "What do you want?"

The other blinked. Then shifted his eyes from left to right. Switched his footing. Scratched the back of his head. Chuckled nervously. "Eheheh...Funny that, actually...Ehehehe..."

Sasuke stood unmoving, although his patience grew thin. The gibberish wasn't helping his situation, either. "Try again!"

"Look...I...Today, in the morning...I was ... well...pretty shitty to...you ...And...uhm... For once, you weren't... So... uhm...Dinner?" He raised the bags to eye-level.

The Uchiha stared at them, then at the other. His eyes travelled from bag to blue orbs. And back. Again. Once again. He scrunched up his nose. "I ain't cooking for you!"

For a moment confusion crossed the blonde's face, before the light-bulb came on. "Uhm...No, that's not... I thought...Uhm..."

To the raven-haired male's disbelieve his teammate blushed.

"Uhm...I ...I thought...wanted to... uhm... I'll cook!" And again with the sheepish, annoying laugh.

"You can't cook!", Sasuke deadpanned.

"Can so!", Naruto retorted insulted.

Sasuke scoffed. "Can not!"

"Can so!"

"Yeah, right!"

"Yeah! Believe it!"

"Hn!"

"I'll prove it!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "You will not enter this premises!"

Naruto growled. "Chicken!"

Sasuke shrugged. "That won't help you!"

"Yeah?... Prissy!"

"Tsk"

"...Wuss!"

"You!...Fine! Prove it then!"

"I will!"

"I dare you!"

"Try me!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

Unbeknownst to him, the blonde had wriggled his way into the flat and was now seemingly looking around to locate the kitchen. Sasuke did not let his confusion show. So he got riled up over child's play. Whatever. So he dropped his guard enough to let the other enter. Whatever. So he'd try the fucking food. Whatever! He was not a wuss! One fucking dish would not kill him, he decided.

"It'd better not be ramen!"

Grumpily, he guided Naruto into the kitchen, where he quite naturally sat down and watched the blonde. To his utter surprise, the other actually seemed to know what he was doing. Expertly, dividing the food into groups, scrubbing it. Fishing out the tools he would need.

Even more shocking, however, was the fact, that Sasuke could only detect food, he actually liked! How weird. Especially the amount of fresh tomatoes. Coincident? Maybe, but unlikely. So where did Naruto learn about his favorite food? Sakura? Sasuke clicked his tongue. Extremely unimaginable. This woman hadn't even known about his dismissive attitude towards sweets. Expecting more from her, was highly implausible.

Reluctantly, he admitted his own curiosity about his teammate. He would not be the one to start a conversation, that was for sure. And with what he knew, about the blonde, there was also no way, he would need to. He could not be that wrong about the blonde.

"...So...", the blonde started. Almost succeeding in drawing to the tiniest smile on the Uchiha's features. Almost. He liked it, when things went according to plan.

"...Sakura was pretty upset after you left. ...She cried."

Sasuke huffed. "She always cries"

"You should still apologize. She made the cake herself, you know?"

"I don't like cakes. "

Yet again, Naruto managed to catch him off guard: "I know. You don't like sweets at all. But this isn't about like or dislike. It's about courtesy..."

"What the hell do you know about courtesy?"

"...It'd be the right thing to do. When someone gives you a present, you accept with a smile and thank them!"

"And when was the last time, someone gave you a present?" the Uchiha deadpanned.

The blonde visibly flinched. Just as fast, he straightened and turned to face him: "In fact, it was today."

Questioningly, Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

Grinning the other continued: "You stood up for me today. That's the nicest thing anyone has ever done or me..."

His cheeks heated. An uncomfortable feeling took over his stomach. Something he never felt before. It felt warm and homey, as if his insides were covered in cotton balls. An unfamiliar feeling. An unwelcome feeling. A feeling, that distracted him from his goal. His revenge. A feeling that made him dwell on things. Nice things. Like the smell of boiling vegetables that hung heavy in the kitchen air. He forcibly stifled those emotions and kept his face stoically impassive. Nevertheless, he could not stop himself from responding: "If that's the best thing to come up with, it's pathetic."

He however, had the slightest apprehension, that a blush was still visible on his cheeks and thus betraying his heartfelt insult. His worry was only confirmed, when instead of arguing his teammate only chuckled and went back to cooking.

Sasuke grunted. This was unlike him. Completely unlike him. Having Naruto here in his kitchen was a sin against any and all of his principles. Talking to him in this friendly matter even more so. He would have to work on that. To make sure it never happened again. ... He would start after dinner. Or maybe tomorrow. It was his birthday after all. Today was special.

The silence kept on for a few minutes. Whenever Naruto was done using a tool or a kitchen utensil he would wash it up, but it aside for latter use or clean it away completely. How efficient. So unlike the usual him. Weirdly, the Uchiha started to enjoy the company of the new found, quiet Naruto. So much so, that he wanted to know more about this side of the blonde, he had never encountered before. He found himself asking: "Why are you doing this?...Cooking for me, I mean"

The blonde shrugged. After a few moments, he whispered: "Your choice. Be it a 'Thank-you' for standing up for me...or a 'happy-birthday-I-don't-have-enough-money-for-anything-expensive'. Either way, I'm here now."

A birthday present? The bubbly, fluttering, warm feeling in the pit of his stomach was back. Bugger. A 'Thank-you'-gift then. Not that it helped. He was still twitchy all over. His palms were sweaty, his feet trembled. The hair on his neck stood up. Okay...change of topic:

"How do you know my likes and dislikes?"

The blonde had turned his attention back to the food. He checked the dish in the oven. He stirred the content of the pots. Without looking back, almost carelessly, he threw over his shoulder: "I think it's only natural to know those things about your friends!"

Friends? Oh jeez, would this queasy feeling stop already? It was just a damn word. Okay... diversion: "What things?"

Naruto shrugged. "Don't know. Things like... In contrary to popular believes, your eyes are blue. Not grey or black... You sleep on your right side, because you are left handed. In case of an attack you'd be faster to dodge. Also you trap you head onto two cushions, because you worry, you would snore otherwise ...You prefer green tea over black tea. But instead of milk, you add lemon... You do not like the cologne Kakashi is wearing. Or the make-up Sakura wore today. You like it better when people stay natural... You are not a big fan of spiders. Not scarred, of course...more like...you'd rather see them dead, than set free. That way they won't come back inside...And uhm... uh...I don't know...Oh, wait. Yes! You always carry a charm with you. The last thing your mum gave you, correct? Because the day she died, there was an exam at the academy. Don't worry, I've never actually seen it, it's just... sometimes, when you're nervous or the team is in a ditch, you reach your hand towards it. ...But yeah... Those are the things that come right of the bet...I'm sure there are more..."

He was going to throw up. He just knew it. How, in the hell, had that idiot achieved all those information about him? Was he that easy to read? His enemies would die of laughter, not fear! Holy hell! This was really, really, really, really, really...

"You are not obvious" the blonde interrupted his train of thoughts. "I just pay really close attention. After all, you are my eternal rival! And I will never lose to you! But some things...There not meant to be known by anyone. I understand. And although, at some point, I might figure them out, I want you to know, that your every secret is save with me!"

Okay?...What was that supposed to mean? Maybe another tactic: "Do you know so much about Sakura as well?"

Silence.

Oh hell. Now what? Did this mean he knew even more, because he stalked his love interest? Or...

"No"

Shit!

"What about Kakashi?"

Please. Please. Please. Please!

"...No"

Bullocks!

"So it's just me than? That has spiked your stalker-tendencies?" Sasuke mused. Angry with himself, more than with anyone else. How could he let a person get so close to him without noticing any of it? And Naruto of all people! He had underestimated him! It was a rookie mistake. A grave mistake, that could cost one's life! Slowly, very slowly he reached for his weapon holster. Better get rid of this idiot now, then wait until he had spilled all his secrets. He could already feel the cool of the metal of his kunai. Now slowly. Extracting, aiming, killing. He tensed. The grip on his weapon strengthened. He pulled the kunai out. Slowly. It made no sound. Aim. And...

Naruto turned around, a hot baking tray in his hands. His eyes landed on the gleaming kunai. Sasuke stiffened, so did Naruto. No one moved. Blue eyes dulled the longer he stared. "I'm not a stalker. I just... I felt like I should know things about you. Many things. As many as possible."

"Why?"

Naruto gulped. "Because out of all the people I know...Of all the people I have met... You are the only one I would ever regard...a best friend" His voice became quieter at the end.

Sasuke barely caught the last words. And when the meaning sunk into his brain, he took a sharp breath. He had not at all expected an answer like this. Shit. Now what? He became nervous. Another first for him. Never had anyone regarded him as friend. Or _best friend_ for that matter. He was not used to the attention. He did not want the attention. His musing halted as Naruto put the dishes on the table. Unbeknownst to him, the other had turned around and draped the dishes on two plates. Garnished them, even.

Baked salmon with a tomato-herb-crust. Tomato risotto and toasted almond-parsley salad. Cold green tea with lemon and rosehip as an aperitif.

Salvia gathered in his mouth. "I'll be damned! This looks really good!" He could not stop those words from spilling from his mouth. Quickly he raised his eyes to the blonde. Observed him. The other smiled but did not move. Dazed he noticed, that his kunai was still pointing at his teammate. He dropped it.

A few moments later they sat oppose to each other. Looked at each other. Sasuke's nose was filled with the rich aroma of the freshly prepared dinner, but he did not dare take a bite. Naruto may have thrown him off guard, but he would not be stupid enough to be poisoned! The other noticed and a sad look crossed his face.

"I would never poison you! Food is way to divine! ...Well for me anyway..."

Sasuke relaxed. Yeah, that idiot would never poison him. Apart from the fact that food really was the most important thing in his life, he was also too stupid to find an untraceable poison. He took his chopsticks and began to shovel some of the delicious meal into his awaiting mouth. God, this was heaven! He closed his eyes and opened his senses for the new sensation. He liked all those ingredients but he had never fixed them up like this. He was a good cook, but not that good. However, he should definitely try next time. There was no way Naruto was better at anything than him. When he opened his eyes again, he became aware of Naruto staring. He also noticed, how the other had not yet touched his food. And he became very still. Watching. Waiting. Maybe there was poison after all? He swallowed.

Naruto smiled and lifted his chopsticks now, too. Before he took the first bite, he muttered: "A true friend stabs you in the front!" [*1]

Sasuke spluttered. What? But Naruto didn't elaborate. He just calmly ate his food. The Uchiha did not take his eyes of him. And then he saw it. There. Hidden. A tiny jolt of the other's lips. A twitch. The corners of his mouth begun to shake. Oh this bloody little..."Fucker!"

And then finally, the blonde laughed out loud. And involuntarily Sasuke joint in. Bloody hell. It had been a long time since he had laughed like this. It felt surprisingly good.

After their fit of laughter was over, they quietly finished their meal. At the end, Sasuke had to admit: "You are an okay cook...sometimes, I'm sure" And then he smirked and Naruto grinned.

The sat on the couch, each a drink in hand. They had cleaned the kitchen together after they had stored the leftovers and rest of the food in the fridge. Instead of dessert, the blonde had each made them a bowl of crushed ice with lime and basil. It wasn't sweet at all and it left a fresh feeling inside their mouths. Sasuke decided he quite liked it. ...Very much, actually. Then they had each taken another glass of tea and flopped onto the couch. Their proximity was closer than usual, the Uchiha noticed. But he didn't mind. In fact, it was quite comfortable. Soon he found himself more relaxed than he could remember ever being. He and Naruto had by now talked for hours. His birthday had long since past. They had training later in the day. They should really put an end to this evening. But Sasuke could not bring himself to mention any of this. It had been way too long, since he had felt like this.

He stretched. His head hit the arm of the couch, as his legs stretched out. His feet gingerly touched his teammates chest. Not that he seemed to care. On the contrary. Naruto wrapped his fingers around his ankles, rid him off of his socks and began massaging his feet. Mhmm. He could definitely get used to this. His toes curled and stretched. Flexed and relaxed. Naruto's hands encouraged their movements. Varied between rubbed and scratching. Caressing and squeezing. A sigh escaped his mouth. This was bliss. He let his mind wander. But all too quickly it was drawn back by a question: "You know my birthday?"

Sasuke blinked. He somehow felt a little twinge of remorse. "Yes. October the tenth" he added and then he waited. For Naruto to be angry with him, for their old pattern to pick up again...but nothing came. The sensual abuse of his feet continued without faltering. Cautiously he risked a look over to the blonde. And was surprised to find a gentle smile on the other's lips. "You are not angry?" he couldn't help but ask.

Naruto blinked. "Angry? Why?"

"Because I didn't congratulate you" Sasuke responded. He did not really want to have this conversation. He feared it would tear their carefully forged bond into shreds.

The blonde chuckled. "Teme...No one ever remembered my birthday. So what if you didn't say anything? You remembered! ...as if I were a precious person in your life..." he mumbled "That's more than enough. Thank you!"

Astonishing them both, the blonde chastely kissed the sole of each of his feet.

They both froze. The bubbly feeling was back twice as bad. Ten times as bad. And it was getting even worse. Okay. This might actually be a bit too cozy for comfort. Sasuke hastily retracted his feet. But their eyes never left each other. Shock was visible in both their eyes. It helped them both to calm down. At least they felt the same way. Their feelings were similar. Sasuke relaxed again, his legs became longer again. Still his feet stopped halfway over to the blonde. It was a bit awkward, they both noticed. And sometimes retreat, was the best strategy. Even Naruto knew that much.

"Maybe I should go..." he hesitantly uttered.

Sasuke didn't respond immediately. To be honest, he did not want the other to leave. But he knew it would be best. Letting him stay longer, would probably lead to an overnight stay. And they would risk the situation becoming more and more awkward. It really would be best for them to part ways now. To let Naruto go home now. Slowly, oh so slowly, Sasuke dragged himself into a sitting position and grunted. There. That was all the answer he would give.

Naruto's chuckle caused his cheeks to darken. Oh bullocks.

"Right then...Is there anything left to do? Anything I should help you with?"

Washing. Cleaning. Cooking. Training. Bathing. Sleeping. ...Okay this was getting weird. Bloody hell, they were going to see each other in a couple of hours! "...No..." he hissed.

The blonde nodded and made his way to the door. He squatted down to retrieve and put on his shoes. And when he straightened afterwards, he turned around again.

"Okay, so... Thanks again...for everything...And maybe... Talk to Sakura tomorrow?"

"Hn"

"Teme..." The blonde stretched his hands out towards him, but did not touch him. He let it drop back to his side and noticeably contemplated about something. Finally he said: "She was the one who send me here, you know. She was so upset about this morning, that she threatened to kill me, if I would not give you a present. Said it was all for our teamwork...and so on...and so forth..." All the while he did not even spare him a glimpse.

Sasuke scoffed. "You always sucked at lying."

Sheepishly, the blonde looked up. A grin threatened to split his face in half. "Says the guy, who believed I was lying good enough to poison him!"

"I never believed such a stupid thing!"

"Did so!"

"Did not!"

"Duh!"

"Nuhu!"

Naruto had leaned forward to mockingly breath the words into his face. However he disregarded the small step at the _genkan_[*3] and came tumbling down on him. Lips first.

It was as painful and as sudden as their first kiss. Yet, not so humiliating. They were alone. The mood had been intimate. They had actually been getting along the whole night. And maybe that was the reason why their kiss lasted longer than anticipated. Neither of them drew back. They let their lips linger on one another.

It was warm. Loving. Homey.

The prickling sensation, that had started as cotton balls in his stomach had morphed into a tingling sensation behind his ears. His heart was about to burst. Breathing was hard, his nose was clogged. He instinctively opened his mouth to draw a breath. A hesitant tongue stopped any attempts of taking a breath. It darted out, traced his lips, nudged his tongue. Inquiringly, he nudged back. It was slimy. Sticky. Tasty. He decided, he liked it. Sasuke pushed harder until their tongues met in the blonde's mouth. There, he left his counterpart behind and instead explored the new territory. It was hard and wet. And still tasty. When he slid his tongue over the roof of Naruto's mouth, the blonde male moaned softly. A sound Sasuke quickly grew accustomed to. Became addicted to it. But he had no time to play this game. The blonde had finally pushed back. His teeth nipped on his tongue, on his lips.

And then their mouths closed again. Yet, they would not leave each other. The would peck at each other. Lingered at each other. Tasted each other, just a little longer.

When they finally came to it, Sasuke's hands were buried in a shock of blonde hair, twisting it. Naruto's hands were on his waist and back. Their eyes were glassy. Their breaths heavy.

Naruto leaned in and touched his forehead with his own, their headbands had long been shed and put away safely. Their noses touched, too. They remained like this for moments. Minutes. Until Naruto sighed. A sound to break the spell.

"I'll see you later!", he whispered.

"Hn"

A last chaste kiss and Naruto left.

Later in his bed Sasuke mulled over the events of the day. Especially the evening brought a smile to his face. Okay, so maybe this hadn't been the worst birthday ever. ... Maybe.

He knew tomorrow would probably be totally different again. Their encounter today would be forgotten. Their intimacy would never be mentioned again. But he had today, forged into his memory.

And even as he drifted off into sleep, the small smile did not leave his lips.

* * *

Thank you for reading!

Tell me what you think, criticize, whatever. I'd like to hear it!

[*1] This quote is from Spartacus (TV-Series)

[*2] Some might know. The genkan is the correct place to leave outdoor shoes before entering the house/flat in Japan. It is considered an important place, perhaps not so much in a small apartment, but very much so in ordinary condominiums or single family dwellings, as the " face " the household shows the world outside. You have different shoes inside and outside. The genkan and the rest of the household is separated by a step. As a general rule the smaller the _genkan_ the lower the step.


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